Stories of Charlemagne and the Twelve Peers of France by Alfred John Church

Fierabras, knowing himself to be vanquished, cried to Oliver, "I / crave your mercy, noble knight, and I pray that I may be baptized; / for how can I refuse to believe in the God by whose help you have now / overcome me? Therefore I surrender myself to you, and beg for your / protection. " When Oliver heard him speak and saw in what a strait he / was, he had great compassion on him, and laid him under a tree, and / so bound up his wounds that he staunched the bleeding. When he had / done this, Fierabras said, "Now, noble sir, carry me away from this / place, for of my own strength I cannot go. " Oliver answered. "Nay, / but you are of so great a weight that I may not take you. " Then said / the giant again, "Take me to the King, for verily I am very near my / end. And if you cannot bear me, then take my horse and mount / thereon, and lay me across the saddle, and put my sword by thy side. / And mark this: there lie in wait in that wood yonder 40,000 / men -- soldiers of mine, whom I set there this very day, bidding them / there abide till I should return from the battle. " Oliver was / ill-content with these words; nevertheless he took the giant and laid / him across the saddle of his horse, and went his way. Then there / charged from the wood a great host of pagans, among whom was a / certain Brullant, and another, Sortybrant by name.

When Oliver saw these he struck his spurs into his horse, but the / beast was so heavily burdened that he could not go so fast as the / enemy pursued. When the men of France saw this, they made all haste / to go to the help of Oliver, Roland first of all, and Richard of / Normandy, and Guy of Burgundy, and Duke Thierry, and as was meet, / Oliver's own father, Duke Reyner. Meanwhile Brullant, having / outstripped his companions, came near, for he rode a horse that was / as swift as a greyhound. Then Oliver said to Fierabras, "Now, Sir / King, I must needs put you down, and this I do with much discontent. / But you see that I am in a great strait, for if these men overtake me / then shall I of a certainty be slain, and King Charles will never see / me more. " Fierabras answered, "Noble Oliver, will you now leave me? / Surely I shall be in very evil case if you so desert me. " Oliver / said, "Nay, but I will not leave you, and will fight for you with all / my strength to the very end. " So saying he put upon himself the / pagan's breastplate, which was in better case than his own, and took / his sword Hautclere in his hand, and turned himself to meet the / enemy. Thereupon came Brullant the Saracen riding fiercely at him, / and struck him in the breast with his spear, so that the shaft brake; / but Oliver was wounded. When Fierabras saw this he said, "Sir / Oliver, you have done enough for me; now take thought for yourself.